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Canzone Piccola Posted by Geoff on Dec 7, 2012
Italian popular music, be it opera or contemporary pop, is well known for its obsession with grandi emozioni, passioni, tragedie e l’amore! And that’s probably one of the reasons that I love Canzone Piccola. Singer songwriter Jovanotti goes completely against fashion by singing about simple little everyday things in a musical poem that, in the…
Gli Amaretti di Saronno Posted by Geoff on Nov 20, 2012
I see this bright red tin a hundred times a day. It sits on a shelf in our kitchen and is full of delicious … croccantini (cat biscuits)! Yes, an empty Amaretti di Saronno tin makes the perfect storage container for dried cat food, and none of our six gatti have yet worked out how…
Il Pettirosso Posted by Geoff on Nov 6, 2012
Rosso arancione contro uno sfondo di verdi, gialli e marroni. È arrivato stamattina, da solo, all’improvviso, una macchia di colore in questi giorni di nuvole grigio acciaio e di piogge che ci assordano col loro trambusto. Qui a casa nostra, quando arrivano i grandi acquazzoni autunnali, quello che fa impressione è più che altro il…
Using ‘Ci’ – The Answers Posted by Geoff on Nov 2, 2012
Here are the answers to our grammar quiz on ‘ci’. Remember that there is often more than one way to translate a sentence. The important thing however is a correct understanding of the usage of ‘ci’. A. Ci is commonly used as un avverbio (an adverb) with the meaning of ‘here’ or ‘there’, e.g. finalmente…
Grammar Quiz–Using ‘Ci’ Posted by Geoff on Oct 31, 2012
Here are some short sentences for you to translate into Italian, each of which requires the use of ci. Before you have a go at it you may need to check out this post: Tricky Little Words – Ci A. Ci is commonly used as un avverbio (an adverb) with the meaning of ‘here’ or…
Le Conserve Pugliesi Posted by Geoff on Oct 26, 2012
Here’s another nice blog from our friend Mattia in Foggia, Puglia. Today he’s going to explain how to make traditional Italian sun dried tomatoes. Eccomi dopo un brusco ritorno alla vita scolastica! Sono riuscito a trovare del tempo libero per parlarvi di particolari metodi di "conservazione" dei cibi, in particolare di specialità Pugliesi. Oggi voglio…
La Leggenda di Lucida Mansi Posted by Geoff on Oct 22, 2012
It seems that every town in Italy has more than its fair share of legends, and Lucca is no exception. Here’s one of my favourites. Like all legends, it has several popular variations. My version contains an amalgam of the most common elements. The Legend of Lucida Mansi Lucida Samminiati, figlia di nobili Lucchesi (daughter…